Written answers

Tuesday, 15 December 2020

Department of Education and Skills

Technological Universities

Photo of Alan DillonAlan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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84. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his views on the need to ensure that Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology and associated institutions continue their multi-campus format as the Connacht Ulster Alliance Technological University progresses given their importance to communities in the west and north-west; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43147/20]

Photo of Simon HarrisSimon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The establishment of technological universities (TUs) is an important part of the Government’s higher education and regional development policy as underscored in the Programme for Government 2020.

TUs are rooted in a multiple-campus physical environment complete with state-of-the-art learning resources such as libraries, laboratories and e-learning facilities, utilising this solid campus base to support the provision of online and distance learning. The configuration and utilisation of specific campuses are matters for each TU.

Under the statutory framework detailed in the Technological Universities Act 2018, it is a matter, in the first instance, for the relevant Institutes of Technology participating in a TU development consortium to progress their plans and, when ready, to make an application to the Minister seeking an order establishing a TU subject to their meeting the eligibility criteria prescribed in the 2018 Act.

The Connacht Ulster Alliance (CUA) TU development consortium, comprising the Galway-Mayo (GMIT), Sligo and Letterkenny Institutes of Technology has made significant progress to date in advancing their proposals. On 7 October I announced the first tranche of funding under a new Technological University Transformation Fund to assist in the creation and development of technological universities. The CUA received €5.7 million under this call, bringing total Exchequer funding of the project since 2013 to €11.6 million.

Additional annual ring-fenced funding is being provided as appropriate under the HEA’s Multi-campus funding initiative which recognises the increased operational costs of multi-campus institutes.

GMIT President Dr. Orla Flynn has stated that the Institute is endeavouring to enable the full range of expertise across the Institute to be harnessed in service of the wider region and that this challenge is one that will also be faced by new TU seeking to be developed by the CUA. However, the establishment of a new TU in the West / North West will provide enormous opportunities for all stakeholders in the region and bring benefits such as international recognition, research capacity building, FDI attraction, skills retention and creation, regional development, enhanced staff and student experience and opportunities and socio-economic progression.

My Department understands that the CUA consortium anticipates submitting an application seeking TU designation under the relevant legislation in early Quarter 1 of 2021.

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